Matt Paknis Leadership Development

"The coward only threatens when he is safe." - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe "A coward is incapable of exhibiting love; it is the prerogative of the brave." - Mahatma Gandhi #leadersarentbullies #StepUp #healthyworkplaces #leaderselevatethoughtandconduct #DignityAtWorkAct #Cyberbullying has become a significant problem in the past decade. The ubiquity of handheld and other devices affords bullies anytime access to their prey, and harassment can often be carried out anonymously.

"Successful business leaders who have helped build institutions of lasting value - all are committed to talent and a culture of excellence. This is usually accomplished by the identification, retention, and development of great people." - Bobby Kotick #leadersarentbullies #healthyworkplaces #leaderselevatethoughtandconduct #stepup #DignityAtWorkAct

"Don't give in to bullying or others making fun of people. Stand up for yourself. Stand up for your friends. Be that one person who is genuinely good-hearted.” - Michelle McCool "Courage is contagious. When a brave (person) takes a stand, the spines of others are often stiffened." - Billy Graham #leadersarentbullies #healthyworkplaces #leaderselevatethoughtandconduct #stepup #DignityAtWorkAct A mob mentality, or what can be called a “group think,” arises when workers sense protection and security from a boss who sends subliminal and overt messages conveying workers are safe if they don’t rat on the boss’s bullying. 

"There is no health without mental health; mental health is too important to be left to the professionals alone, and mental health is everyone's business." - Vikram Patel "We need to identify the triggers aggravating  mental health issues in our society - bullying, social media negativity and anxiety, gender based violence, substance abuse, stigma about maternal issues, etc., and we need to discuss these more and get to the source of the problems." - Sanam Saeed #leadersarentbullies #healthyworkplaces #leaderselevatethoughtandconduct #stepup #DignityAtWorkAct

"A lack of transparency results in distrust and a deep sense of insecurity." - Dalai Lama "Transparency, honesty, kindness, good stewardship, even humor, work in businesses at all times." - John Gerzema #StepUp #healthyworkplaces #leaderselevatethoughtandconduct #DignityAtWorkAct Bullying is typically motivated by the bully’s insecurities and inadequacies. Any colleague who unwittingly threatens to highlight or expose a bully’s failings or insecurities is a potential target. #LeadersArentBullies

"When we long for life without difficulties, remind us that oaks grow strong in contrary winds and diamonds are made under pressure." - Peter Marshall "The greatest weapon against stress is our ability to choose one thought over another.” - William James "In times of great stress or adversity, it's always best to keep busy, to plow your anger and your energy into something positive." - Lee Iacocca #leadersarentbullies #healthyworkplaces #leaderselevatethoughtandconduct #stepup   #DignityAtWorkAct

Judge William E. Smith said, "some passages referred to “flagrant” safety violations, increased physical accidents, intentional destruction of company equipment to undermine other employees, and illegal behavior by managers or executives of a certain company.   Other passages suggested that executives of a particular company colluded with or ignored troubling behavior by a certain manager while employees who reported such behavior suffered retaliation." Such statements, “if false and concerning Toray,  could  be capable of defamatory meaning,” Smith wrote. "However, there was no evidence in the summary judgment record suggesting that Toray lost profits, suffered reputational harm with clients or in the business community at large, or lost employees as a result of the book." Smith said. Paknis' attorney, John Mangones emphasized that the non-disparagement clause did not prohibit Paknis from sourcing any material from his experience at Toray; it simply

"Goodness is about character: integrity, honesty, kindness, generosity, moral courage, and the like. More than anything else, it is about how we treat other people." - Dennis Prager #leadersarentbullies #StepUp #healthyworkplaces #leaderselevatethoughtandconduct #DignityAtWorkAct Bullies tend to target good people simply because of their “goodness.” These targets don’t do anything wrong to attract or to justify #bullying. Targets do many things right actually, and this, of course, makes bullies jealous and irrational in retaliation.

Happy Thanksgiving!  "The first step toward change is awareness." - Nathaniel Branden "They always say time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself." - Andy Warhol #leadersarentbullies #healthyworkplaces #leaderselevatethoughtandconduct #stepup #DignityAtWorkAct  

 Bald Eagle "Fear keeps us focused on the past or worried about the future. If we can acknowledge our fear, we realize, right now, we are okay. Right now we are alive. Our bodies are working. Our eyes see the beautiful sky. Our ears hear the voices of our loved ones." -Thich Nhat Hanh #leadersarentbullies   #healthyworkplaces #DignityAtWorkAct   #leaderselevatethoughtandconduct Schoolyard bullies target those who don't fit the norm. They pick on those they perceive as “different” who trigger the bullies' fears of being ostracized.  Workplace bullies target talented employees who trigger the bullies' fear of being exposed as an incompetent fraud. #Stepup

"The ideal of behaviorism is to eliminate coercion: to apply controls by changing the environment in such a way as to reinforce the kind of behavior that benefits everyone." - B. F. Skinner "Once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth." - Arthur Conan Doyle #leadersarentbullies #healthyworkplaces #leaderselevatethoughtandconduct #stepup #DignityAtWorkAct

"Kindness in words creates confidence. Kindness in thinking creates profoundness. Kindness in giving creates love." - Lao Tzu "No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted." - Aesop #healthyworkplaces #stepup #leaderselevatethoughtandconduct #Dignityatworkact Bullies misjudge and equate kindness and gentleness as weakness, are triggered, and go in for the kill. Sincere and unsuspecting targets are caught off guard by a bully’s attacks. They wonder, "why me" and "what's their problem?" #LeadersArentBullies

"Truth will always be truth, regardless of lack of understanding, disbelief or ignorance." - W. Clement Stone "Relationships feed on credibility, honesty, and consistency." - Scott Borchetta #leadersarentbullies #healthyworkplaces #leaderselevatethoughtandconduct #stepup #DignityAtWorkAct

"Independence is happiness." - Susan B. Anthony "Follow the path of the unsafe, independent thinker. Expose your ideas to danger and controversy. Speak your mind and fear less the label of 'crackpot' than the stigma of conformity." - Thomas J. Watson #healthyworkplaces #stepup #leaderselevatethoughtandconduct  #DignityAtWorkAct  Bullies often target those who act independent and refuse to kowtow — typically a veteran worker who is highly skilled, well-liked, honest, ethical, and pro-social. They see their jobs as reflections of themselves and more than a means to earn a paycheck. #LeadersArentBullies

"Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything." - George Bernard Shaw "God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference." - Reinhold Niebuhr #leadersarentbullies #healthyworkplaces #leaderselevatethoughtandconduct #stepup #DignityAtWorkAct

In the complaint, Toray asserted 14 separate violations of the nondisparagement clause, adding up to $770,000 in liquidated damages.   Smith observed (some of) the allegedly defamatory statements in the book either expressed Paknis’ subjective views about “bully” managers and bullying culture or contained factual assertions that could not be construed as injuries to Toray’s reputation. “There are simply no details in the book that would lead a reader to reasonably believe that a statement is referring to Toray,” Mangones said.   Former employee can be sued over workplace bullying book By:  Eric T. Berkman   August 26, 2022 North Kingstown, RI’s Toray Plastics, which is suing a former employee over a book he wrote, ‘Successful Leaders Aren’t Bullies’ A U.S. District Court judge has found that a company could bring nondisparagement and defamation claims against a former employee who wrote a book on workplace bullying even though the book never referenced the employer by na